Sermon: Christmas 2B (Gospel)

4 January AD 2015
The Second Sunday after Christmas

Title: Getting into Dad’s Things (MP3 Audio)

Summary: When we think about children getting into their parents things, we usually imagine the little ones making a mess of Mom’s cosmetics or losing Dad’s tools. We visualize a trail of loss and destruction strewn in their wake.

However, there’s also an upside to getting into the good habits and God-pleasing vocations of our parents. In times gone by, whatever Dad did, his sons followed suit and the works of Mom became the works of her daughters.

So it is with Jesus: He gets into the “things” of His Father. Divine things such as forgiving sins, redressing wrongs, and undoing sin’s damage belong to Father and to Son. So when Jesus responded to Mary and Joseph when they found Him in the temple, He gently reminded them that this was the place He was meant to be and these were the things He was meant to do.

Because Jesus attended well and completely to His Father’s business, He lived the sinless life that eludes us, then died the cursed death that should be our lot. He effected our salvation exactly as His Father intended and then blessed us with fruits of His labors and by the power of His Spirit moves us to take up and likewise to do the things that our heavenly Father would have done.

Text: [Jesus] grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.

Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom.

And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, but supposing him to be in the group they went a day’s journey, but then they began to search for him among their relatives and acquaintances, and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for him.

After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. And when his parents saw him, they were astonished.

And his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.”

And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” And they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them.

And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And his mother treasured up all these things in her heart.

And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man. Luke 2:40-52

Scripture quoted from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®, © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Audio: Click to hear the MP3 of Getting into Dad’s Things.

NB: For some reason, a few people have had problems trying to play the inline audio if Windows Media is their default MP3 player. If this occurs, you can either change to QuickTime or another default browser player, copy and paste the link directly into a selected player, or download it to your computer, where it seems to work regardless of which player. Several folks have suggested VLC Player from VideoLAN.

Other Readings: Psalm 119:97-104; 1 Kings 3:4-15; Ephesians 1:3-14

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